Automatic toll-box for telephone pay-stations



(No Model.)

H. 0. ROOT. AUTOMATIC TOLL BOX POE TELEPHONE PAY STATIONS..

No; 553,361. Patented Jan. 21, 1896.

mm CL S E w W UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HO\VARD O. ROOT, OF BROOKLYN, NEIV YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO LOUISI'I. AYRES, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

AUTOMATIC TOLL-BOX FOR TELEPHONE PAY-STATIONS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 558,361, dated January21, 1896.

Application filed March 22, 1894:. Serial No. 504,681. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HOWARD C. ROOT, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Brooklyn, Kings county, New York, have inventedImprovements in Automatic Toll- Boxes for Telephone Pay-Stations, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of automatic toll-boxes for telephonepay-stations in which audible signals automatically produced at thepay-stations by the toll-coins introduced are transmitted to theoperator at the exchange through the medium of the tele phonictransmitting-instrument at the paystation.

The object of my invention is to so construct such an apparatus that allthe different sizes of coins to be used for tolls may be introduced bythe customer at one and the same slot,and that they will neverthelessautomatically produce different signals, and this without the employmentof electrical appliances within the toll-box.

In carrying out my present invention I prefer to make use of some of thefeatures of my toll system for which I obtained Letters Patent No.4=-l0,118, dated November 4, 1890, as hereinafter described, and asillustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical section through the toll boX.Fig. 2 is a vertical section through a part of the back board andshowing one of the pivoted fingers hereinafter referred to.

As in the device of my above-mentioned patent, the toll-box has a singleslot for the introduction of the coins, and a single inclined chute downwhich the coins may pass, and as a part of the mechanicalsignal-producing means I prefer to use a number of movable fingershaving points arranged at different distances from the bottom of thesaid chute, so that different sizes of toll-coins passing through theone chute will strike a diiferent number of fingers and so cause thetransmission of different signals to the operator at the exchange.

In the drawings the toll-box B is provided with a slot 1) for theintroduction of the tollcoins or other disk-like tokens, which forconvenience may be referred to simply as coins. Below this slot is theupper end of the chute or runway O, which in the present instance isillustrated as made in two sections of reversed inclines, but may bemade up of a single continuous incline or any convenient number ofsections arranged in any convenient way. The two sections are shown byway of example. To keep the coins on the runway as they pass down, aguard c is used, as shown in Fig. 2. This guard is omitted in Fig. 1 forclearer illustration of the other parts. Over this inclined chute Iarrange a series of mechanical signal-producin g devices with the partsof such devices to be struck by the different toll-coins arranged atdifferent distances from the bot tom of the chute, so thatdifferent-sized coins will strike or automatically operate a differentnumber of signals in passingthrough this one chute.

As already explained I prefer to use as the parts to be struck by thecoins pivoted fingers F substantially similar to those shown anddescribed in my above-mentioned patent, but instead of constructingthese fingers to control the making or breaking of an electric circuit Iuse them to mechanically operate audible signals. For this purpose eachpivoted finger F is provided with a hammer F adapted to strike a bell,gong or other soundproducing device D.

As described in my above-mentioned patent, I prefer to combine with thefingers F guards G which are arranged over different contact-fingers atdifferent heights from the bottom of the inclined chute, so that some ofthe larger coins will run over these guards, and thereby be preventedfrom coming into contact with the fingers intended to be struck by thesmaller coins. I make some of these contact-fingers compositethat is,with two or three legs or points f lying under and over guards ofdifferent heights.

In the case illustrated five signal-producing devices are shown, and thebox may be taken as adapted for use of five different coins, such. as afive-cent piece, a ten-cent piece, a twenty-five-cent piece, afifty-cent piece and a dollar. Each finger F is in the constructionshown composite and has three points or legs f. The first finger has itslegs adapted to be struck by the ten-cent piece, the five-cent piece andthe dollar. The second has points to be struck by the five-cent piece,the fifty-cent piece and the dollar. The third, fourth and fifth fingershave each three points, of which the lower one is adapted to be struckby a tWenty-five-cent piece, the

next by the fifty-cent piece and the uppermost by the dollar. With thisarrangement a ten-cent piece passing through the chute will give onesignal, a five-cent piece two signals, a twenty-five-cent piece threesignals, and a fifty-cent piece four signals, while the dollar willcause all five signals to be struck.

Where the fingerF is made composite, the legs or points f, instead ofbeing arranged parallel with each other, are preferably inclined, asshown in Fig. 2, so that each of the several legs will be in the sameplane with that coin which is to strike it as it runs through the chute.

I claim as my invention 1. An automatic toll box for telephone paystations, having a single slot and an inclined chute for theintroduction and passage of various sizes of toll coins and a series ofmechanical signal-producing devices combined with said chute and withinthe box, whereby the diiferent sizes of toll coins in passing throughthe chute will operate different numbers of the signals, substantiallyas described.

2. An automatic toll boX for telephone pay stations having an inclinedchute and a series of pivoted fingers having points, adapted to bestruck by the passing coins at different heights from the bottom of thechute, each pivoted finger carrying a hammer, and soundproducing deviceswithin the boX to be struck by the several hammers, substantially asdescribed.

3. An automatic toll box for telephone pay stations having a chute forthe passage of the coins and guards at different heights from the bottomof the chute and a composite finger having legs at different heightsfrom the bottom of the chute, said legs being inclined with reference toeach other, whereby each of the several legs will be in the same planewith that coin which is to strike, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof .I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

